Vata, Pitta or Kapha?

It is exciting to witness how times are changing and our perspective continues to evolve. Today we are becoming more conscious on the impact we make on the Planet Earth and how it affects our well-being.

I cannot help but wonder why if our ancestors had the answers to co-existing with nature to bring harmony, balance and wellness, yet it is taking us this long to re-discover this information.

I don’t think it’s a coincidence that many have heard about yoga and other mind and body practices as a way to restore the inner/outer balance we all seek, but how many have heard about Ayurveda?

Did you know that Yoga and Ayurveda go hand and hand?

Ayurveda can be translated as the “Science of Life” originated in India over 5000 years ago. Many describe Ayurveda as “The Mother of All Healing”.

Originally, Ayurveda was taught and passed down orally to their disciples. It was not until few thousands years ago that some of the teachings of Ayurveda were put into print.

Just to get a perspective on how these ancient teachings have impacted our Holistic approaches today, we can say that therapies like homeopathy and polarity have their roots in Ayurveda.

The main difference between Ayurveda and the Western Medicine is that Ayurveda seeks to prevent illnesses or imbalances. Ayurveda’s focus is to maintain a balanced and healthy lifestyle through yoga, diet, awareness of our habits and thoughts and use of natural remedies.

Ayurveda states that each individual has a unique constitution or specific combination of basic energies called Doshas. The three Doshas are: Vata, Pitta and Kapha.

Each dosha has general mental, emotional and physical characteristics that influence each individual differently depending on your unique combination that forms your constitution.

This emotional, physical and mental combination can be disturbed and become unbalanced by diet, emotional or physical stress, bad choices, season, weather, etc.

How can you restore your inner balance and improve your health?

The answer lies on your original constitution determined at the time of conception (Pakriti) and knowing your tendencies to imbalance (Vikriti).

The best way to know your unique Dosha combination is to see an Ayurvedic practitioner to help you. If you cannot find one and you would like to have a general idea, you could take few Ayurvedic tests online. I can honestly tell you that you should take several of them and average the results out but keep in mind the results may not be 100% accurate.

Thankfully, Ayurveda is becoming more mainstream and many yoga teachers are now studying Ayurvedic principles and are including some of those practices in their lives and recommending it to their students.

I have been including many Ayurveda practices in my daily routine for years now, and after my intensive AyurYoga training at the Ayurveda Institute; I have a better understanding on how Yoga and Ayurveda can help me and others to make positive changes in their lives.

If you are interested on learning more about this amazing practice, I would recommend reading “Ayurveda – The Science of Self Healing.” This is one of my favorite books written by one of my teachers Dr. Lad.

You can also contact your local Ayurveda practitioner or search for Yoga teachers that have some type of Ayurveda training to help you combine this two amazing practices.

Adri is a Global Vinyasa, Prana Flow yoga teacher, and Power Pilates instructor with over 1800 hours of training and over 8 years of experience. Thanks to her extensive studies and continuous trainings, she has created a unique approach on how she teaches yoga. Adri’s mission is to help you awaken and reconnect with your Inner Beauty helping you live your life to your fullest potential.

Adri is the Co-Founder and Director of Maha Shakti Teacher training program. In addition, Adri is one of the few yoga teacher approved by Shiva Rea to lead Prana Flow modules in the US and abroad. She also is a contributor for Elephant Journal, Origin Magazine, YogaVibes, Yogitunes, and Learn it Live.

You can find Adri sharing her passion for yoga by leading master classes, workshops, teacher trainings and retreats in the Dallas area and abroad. For more information please visit www.innerbeautyyoga.com

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Editor: Elysha Anderson

 

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